Getting Ready for Action (Orientation and more!)

*On orientation attitude: Two stories, a playlist and a top eleven list. A couple of years back, I posted a little round-up of Orientation inspiration, gathering ideas from a few friends in the field. This year I find myself collecting creative ideas for my School Library Management class from blogs and tweets coming across my network in the form of an Orientation And Getting Ready For Action playlist. I decided to reach out a bit more and solicit ideas from LM_NET and the #tlchat community in the hope that we might grow an orientation ideas playlist for the greater good.

(Feel free to contribute!) This year, folks are starting early, riffing on current memes, popular music, Pokémon Go, and BreakoutEDU. A collateral benefit of engaging in this kind of poking around is that I discover new friends. I recently met Jill Sonnenberg and Suzanne Sannwald. I discovered Jill Sonnenberg’s orientation strategies when she responded to my request on LM_NET.

Buckle in for one of the fastest-paced sessions at conference! 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
*Orientation inspiration. *Beginning the School Year: It’s About the Learners Not the Content (Jackie Gerstein)
Too many classes, all grade levels, begin the school year with getting down to academic business – starting to cover content, discussing expectations regarding academic requirements, giving tests, and other academic information provided by the teacher to the students in a mostly one-way communication. The human or social element is often disregarded. I believe that all classes should begin with focusing on having the students make connections between themselves and the educator; and between one another. I want students to learn about one another in a personal way. I want to learn about my students so my instructional strategies can be more personalized and tailored to their needs and interests. Beginning class with a focus on connections rather than content gives learners the following messages: You are the focus of the class not me.You are important as a learner in this class.You will be expected to engage in the learning activities during class time.

Getting to Know Learners Like this:
10 Tips for New Teachers. I fell upon this article by Jennifer Gonzalez (known all over the world for her excellent site, “The Cult of Pedagogy”) advising new teachers. It was a great read and reminded me a lot of my ups and downs as a beginning teacher. Here is the thing about teaching: If you are passionate about what you do, it never really becomes “easy.” It is hard in a different way. It is always emotionally taxing and has its share of challenging days. That being said, education is such an amazingly rewarding endeavor, those tough days are ones that you will come to look at differently when you have those really good days. But starting off, there are some things I figured out, and there are things I wished I knew back then, that might be helpful for others entering the profession, or maybe even switching schools. Here are some of those suggestions. 1. Usually, when you hear the importance of relationships in education, there is a focus on how we build rapport with our students. 2.

Don’t hesitate. 3. 4. 5. 6.
The Power of First Lines: Another New Library Orientation. School is back in session in Georgia, and I’m once again reorganizing what happens in the first visit to the library. I’ve tried to steer away from a traditional orientation where students hear the do’s and don’ts in the library. It’s not that they aren’t important, but is that really the message I want to send about reading with the first words that come out of my mouth? The message that I really want students to hear is about the joy of reading. I want them to hear about how readers talk about books to one another. I also wanted to tackle a problem that bothered me last year.

So, here’s what a first library visit looked like for 3rd-5th grade this year. What are you reading? We started with a question, but instead of asking students to share their own reading, I showed them what I just finished and what I was reading now. I promised them that all year long I would post what I’m reading on the door of the library so they can always see, even if I’m with a class. Power of First Lines. ShannonMillerMovieTicket.png. ShannonMillerWhatYourTeacherLibrarianCanDoForYOU.png. Back-to-School Checklist for a Learner-Ready School Library.

What’s on your school library back-to-school checklist? Do you have a learner-ready school library? I’m kind of like a second-grader when it comes to a new school year. I love new school supplies and the excitement of seeing all the people I’ve missed over the summer. My feelings about a new school year may resonate with you, but sadly they do not resonate with all of our learners.

As I thought about posting a blog at this time of year, I contemplated what I share with new teachers, principals, and administrators about school libraries in my district. I began to rethink what it is that they all need to know. I have been contemplating how our new National School Library Standards for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries play into this conversation. So let’s start a back-to-school checklist for a learner-ready school library: Your Goals for 2018-2019 Have you written several goals for the 2018-2019 school year? Yes, this list is long and may seem daunting, but you’ve got this!
Welcoming Students With a Smile. A widely cited 2007 study claimed that teachers greeting students at the classroom door led to a 27 percentage point increase in academic engagement. The problem? It included just three students. Now a new, much larger and more credible study—comprising 203 students in 10 classrooms—validates that claim: Greeting students at the door sets a positive tone and can increase engagement and reduce disruptive behavior.

Spending a few moments welcoming students promotes a sense of belonging, giving them social and emotional support that helps them feel invested in their learning. The first few minutes of class are often the most chaotic, as students transition from busy areas such as the hallway or playground. Ten middle school teachers were randomly assigned by the researchers to one of two groups. Teachers in the second group attended classroom management training sessions offered by their schools, but they weren’t given any specific instructions on how to start class. Building Community. Back to School Resources. *Library Orientation: The Big Show. Library Orientation: Your Big First Impression If you’re like me, a middle school librarian serving a thousand students, back-to-school library orientations are my big show of the year.

My job sounds simple: keep the readers reading and wake up the dormant or nonreaders. What makes it difficult is that these students could choose never to step in the library again unless forced to with a class, and I’ve got one big chance to ignite enthusiasm for my library program. Especially in this age of smartphones, texting, social media, YouTubers, and gaming, convincing middle school students to choose reading can be a challenge.

O. Prezi When I started as a librarian fourteen years ago, I thought that library orientations were an introduction to the library OPAC system, the library hours, rules, procedures, and organization. O. The Power of Reading as Entertainment O. Presentation Flexibility with Prezi Then I move into the book covers and the book trailers. Go Digital Author: Sara Stevenson. The 12 Most Important Things to Do . . . in the First Week of Your New Job. By Carrie Marting and Julie Marie Frye Congrats on your new position! Whether you are just starting in this awesome profession…or starting over in a school that is new to you, you may be wondering: “What now?” And “How do I prioritize the one million things I could possibly be doing with my time?”

We’ve been there! When we first started our library careers we were bursting with ideas from library school and best practices from books that we devoured the moment we were hired! And still, we weren’t actually sure what the most important things were to do on Day 1, the Teacher Workday. Sure, there are things like setting up the circulation system to ensure that all patrons can check out materials, but that’s not really what we are writing about here.

To help you in your transition, we’ve outlined what we find to be the 12 most important things to do in the first week on the job. Meet as many teachers as possible. Enjoy your year and know that it gets easier. Have we missed something?
Jennifer LaGarde on BreakoutEdu. Reedy Library | Library Orientation 2018-2019. Keeping It Fresh for Freshman Orientation. At the start of the school year the library is a central location in a school that has so much to share with incoming freshman students. We have procedural information, rules and regulations, and resource knowledge to share with an entire new group of students in a short class period. As things in our schools change, so does our orientation programs and the struggle for engaging delivery of information is real. As I dove into planning for this year my goal was to keep orientation fresh, engaging, and meaningful. Keeping Delivery Fresh The first step was revamping my Google Slides presentation.

Keeping Activities Fresh Now that my presentation was updated with a fresh look I started looking at revamping my activities. Activity 1 involves the students finding our new “East Lab” area. Activity 2 involves the students finding our fiction book section. Keeping The Message Fresh Author: Elizabeth Pelayo Elizabeth Pelayo is the library media specialist at St. Like this: Like Loading...
New Student Orientation for the School Library. Reflecting on the Summer and Preparing for a New School Year It’s the time of year when we transition from summer schedules to back-to-school activities. As I plan my own new student orientation for the library, I am mindful of just how quickly the summer flew by. Last month I wrote about library advocacy during the summer as I prepared to travel to Boston, Massachusetts, for the annual Building Learning Communities Conference.

Well, I promised a quick conference update, so here it is in a nutshell. My session began with a fire alarm and a building evacuation. After a false alarm announcement and a large dose of humor, the session did happen. New Student Orientation at Your School So, fast forward to the end of August. At my high school, freshmen come to campus prior to the first day of school to experience an immersion program geared to making them a part of the school community. There are so many benefits to starting the year with a purposeful library orientation. Cahoy, E. Like this:
I Read Because: A Book Tasting Library Orientation | Expect the Miraculous.

I’m always trying to maximize what happens during library orientation each year. This year, I asked myself what I really hoped students experienced on their very first visit. Yes, there are many expectations and rules I could go over, but what message do I send if that’s how I spend our time on day 1. Instead, I wanted to focus on the power of reading and give students time to explore the genres of the library.

As students entered, I played a video from Scholastic’s “Open a World of Possible” site. I shared a couple of reasons I read. I also loved that I had teacher voices to share. Last year was our first year with a genrefied library. I pulled a few books from some of our genre sections and put them in baskets or piles on tables. We ended our time by thinking about how the experience felt as well as taking a look at times when the computer is actually useful for finding a book. Students then checked out the books they needed.

Like this: Like Loading...
SummerBingo (3).pdf. Facebook. Collections. Library Monthly Checklists. How to Get Ready for a New Year at Your New School (Diana Rendina)
This August, I’ll be the new media specialist at Tampa Preparatory, an independent 6-12 school in downtown Tampa. This will be my first time in seven years at a new (to-me) school. Needless to say, I’m both excited and anxious at the same time. What programs should I plan? How will the culture of the library shift? How to Get Ready for a New Year at Your New School Starting at a new school can be overwhelming, so it’s good to have a plan. Go in Early Especially when you’re going to be at a new-to-you school, I think it’s helpful to go in a few times over the summer and get your bearings. Clean House (but Not Too Much) If you’re lucky, the previous librarian cleaned out things before leaving.

Get to Know Your Students and Teachers Being that it’s a new school for you, there will be a lot of new people to meet. Don’t Overplan the First Year It’s really tempting to plan to do ALL THE THINGS your first year. Reflect and Evaluate Half-Way through the Year Author: Diana Rendina. Infographic! 10 Back to School Tips for an Awesome Year! –(Shelley Terrell)
“Teaching should be such that what is offered is perceived as a valuable gift and not as a hard duty.” – Albert Einstein Today was my first day of class. I have been teaching since 1994 and each year I still get nervous and have a few hiccups. However, I start out strong with the 10 tips provided in my presentation and post, Teacher Zen.

Thanks to Venngage, the infographic creation tool, I now have this very cool infographic to share with you with these 10 tips visualized. Feel free to share with your staff. Get your copy of The 30 Goals Challenge, Learning to Go, or Hacking Digital Learning.
Seesaw Go! Game for Students (K-5) – Ideas For Your Classroom. The First Days of School: Setting the Climate for Year. I have written before about the beginning of the school year, Beginning the School Year: It’s About Connections Not Content. I begin all classes focusing on having the students make connections between each other and with me. I want students to learn about one another in a personal way. I want to learn about my students so my instructional strategies can be more personalized and tailored to their needs and interests.

As we begin this new school year, I want to share my own ideas for what I believe represent best practices for doing so. I have the following goals for beginning the school year: What should also be obvious from this list is what is not on it – namely a focus on content-driven instruction during the first days of school. These are the activities I used on the first day of school with my gifted class of 2nd to 6th grade students: Morning Check-In I believe in including classroom activities that build emotional intelligence and social emotional learning. Thumball Ice Breaker. Fresh Orientation: Library Breakout - Teacher Ed - Google Slides. The january hat (Barbara Braxton)
It is January and it’s a new year around the world . And just as Janus, the Roman god after whom the month is named, has two faces to look both forward and back, it’s a time for teacher librarians to do the same.

Even though Australian teacher librarians are enjoying the long break between academic years, memories of the year just gone are fresh and they are already thinking of the new challenge that is just over the horizon. There’s time to reflect on what worked well in 2015, identify what could be built on in the year ahead and plan for it to happen. For without reflection there can be no learning and without learning there can be no progress. Seeing you, being you Knowing who we are and what we stand for is at the core of what we do so it’s worth starting by identifying what we believe it means to be a teacher and how this then translates into being a teacher librarian. This is my manifesto (which you will need Adobe Flash to view). being seen seeing ahead. Library Orientation (Springfield)
Poke-brary Scavenger Hunt.

GooseChase EDU - Game Library. Orientation 2016-17 (Susan Sannwald)
5 Tips for New School Librarians (and those who aren't so new) - Google Slides. Fun Ideas for Library Orientation. West Hills High School Library Welcome Video. Sli.do - Audience Interaction Made Easy. A Few Thoughts for the Beginning of the School Year: Part 1.

Fall Library instruction program begins … and much more | Mira Costa High Library Blog. Prezi by jill sonnenberg. Freshmen orientation for Library. YA Books and More: New Kind of Orientation!
The Absolutely True Adventures of a School Librarian: This Week in the JCHS Library: August 8-12, 2016. Mrs. ReaderPants: New school librarian? 10 things you should do first...